This month's book vote sees five Combat titles battling for your support. Read the full descriptions and have your say by filling out the form on the Book Vote Page. Plus, check out the results of last month's Duel Aviation Vote.

 

Caesarean Roman Soldier vs Pompeian Roman Soldier: Caesar’s Civil War 49–45 BC

Swedish Soldier vs Imperialist Soldier: Thirty Years’ War 1630–35

English Soldier vs French Soldier: War of the Spanish Succession 1704–09

Prussian Infantryman vs Russian Infantryman: Seven Years’ War 1757–59

British Soldier vs French Soldier: Peninsular War 1812

 

Caesarean Roman Soldier vs Pompeian Roman Soldier: Caesar’s Civil War 49–45 BC

During 49–45 BC the Roman world was shaken to its core by a titanic struggle for supremacy, as forces loyal to the victorious general Julius Caesar confronted the troops and allies of Pompey the Great. From the opening encounters in Iberia and North Africa to the decisive battles of Pharsalus (48 BC), Thapsus (46 BC) and Munda (45 BC), the two sides threw everything they had into a conflict that would shape the fortunes of Rome and the wider world for centuries to come.

 

Swedish Soldier vs Imperialist Soldier: Thirty Years’ War 1630–35

In July 1630, King Gustavus II Adolphus and his formidable Swedish army landed in Pomerania, determined to lead the Protestant cause to victory over the Imperialist forces hitherto dominant in the Thirty Years’ War. The two sides met in battle at Breitenfeld (1631), the first major Protestant victory of the conflict; Lützen (1632), where Gustavus Adolphus was killed at the head of his troops; and Nördlingen (1634), where the Swedes were defeated by Imperial forces.

 

English Soldier vs French Soldier: War of the Spanish Succession 1704–09

Determined to counter French efforts to dominate the Spanish Empire, England and an array of other European powers went to war in 1701 in a conflict that spanned the globe and shaped international relations for decades afterwards. In the wake of the seismic battle of Blenheim (1704), three battles that proved decisive involved English and French troops: Ramillies (1706), Oudenarde (1708) and Malplaquet (1709).

 

Prussian Infantryman vs Russian Infantryman: Seven Years’ War 1757–59

During the early part of the Seven Years’ War (1756–63), Frederick the Great’s Prussian troops were in the ascendant, but the entry of Russia into the conflict transformed Prussia’s military fortunes. At the bloody battles of Gross-Jägersdorf (1757), Zorndorf (1758) and Kunersdorf (1759), the Russian forces won a formidable reputation, with Frederick saved from defeat and ruin only by the death of the Empress Elizabeth in 1762.

 

British Soldier vs French Soldier: Peninsular War 1812

During the Peninsular Wars (1807–14) the British and their allies confronted the French forces in Portugal and Spain in a host of bloody sieges. Three of the most important took place in 1812: Ciudad Rodrigo, where the storming was followed by appalling scenes of disorder; Badajoz, in which the French garrison inflicted appalling casualties on the attackers; and Burgos, where the defenders successfully thwarted the British efforts to storm the castle.

 

Last month, we asked what you would like to see published in our Duel (Aviation) series. Thank you to everyone who voted and provided feedback. The results gave us a clear winner. Check out the full results below to find out more!

B-29 Superfortress vs Japanese Nightfighters (1944–45) 25.3%

Beaufighter vs German Flak Ships (1941–45) 31%

VLR P-51 Mustangs vs Japanese Fighters (1945) 13.1%

Coalition Aircraft vs Iraqi SAMs (1991) 13.1%

Sea Fury vs MiG 15 (Korean War 1950–53) 17.5%